Ilchi Lee attended the 56th Korea Sports Awards on October 15, 2018, an annual award ceremony by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to honor those who have contributed to sports development and promotion. At the ceremony, he was given the Republic of Korea Life Sports Promotion Award for his contribution for the past 38 years to the improvement of the physical and mental health of the Korean people and the development of life sports. This year, Ilchi Lee was the only person given this award, which has a long tradition.

Ilchi Lee's long tradition began in 1980, when he started teaching exercises for free in a park in Anyang. These exercises that work your body, mind, and energy were based on an even older tradition, thousands of years old, called Sundo, a Korean Tao practice. The exercises became the basis of the many methods for health and self-development Ilchi Lee has created.

Kookhak Kigong is also practiced in other countries where Ilchi Lee's methods have traveled, including Japan, China, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, Poland, Belgium, and Qatar. For the past six years, Kookhak Kigong practitioners worldwide have gathered in Korea to show their skills at a Kookhak Kigong conference and competition. In October 2018, 10,000 people from 13 countries attended the event.

Lee took the stage to receive the Life Sports Promotion Award with winners of gold medals in the recent 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

One of them was skeleton racing gold medalist Sungbin Yun.

Ilchi Lee congratulated all Kookhak Kigong instructors and practitioners, saying this award was for them as well.

Ki, qi, or chi are words for energy in Asia, the life energy that courses through designated channels in our bodies. Ki is meant to move freely through these channels, and it responds to our thoughts, emotions, and movement. With our focus, we are not only able to sense the ki in our bodies, but direct it as needed. We can smooth away blocks to our health, expel built-up emotions, and flush our minds of thoughts until our minds become like clear, still lakes. Adding movement, makes this more powerful—that is kigong (qigong).

On October 8-9, 2018, we held the 6th Annual Sport Kigong Competition for All in Seoul, South Korea with the slogan, "Be Friends! Healthy human beings, happy world, peaceful earth." Ten thousand people came to watch over 1,000 people from various countries compete. There were people from Korea, Japan, and China, as well as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and even the Middle East. They wore colorful costumes as their bodies moved fluidly and powerfully to music in different forms of kigong, communicating the energy of life to all.

However, we don't need to wear a costume or know a particular form in order to do kigong. Nothing is easier than kigong. There's no right or wrong way to do kigong.

At the core of kigong is spirit. If ki is the gas we put in our cars, spirit—the conscious awareness that is housed in our bodies—is the driver. As we move the energy in our bodies, the spirit that was trapped by our old thoughts and stuck emotions is set free. It expands until it meets the energy of the cosmos and we experience oneness with the universe.

When your spirit is free, it can move your body, and your life, in alignment with the universe. It can create health in the body and its hopes and dreams in the world. This is kigong.

Many people live without knowing and feeling their spirit. Instead, they become slaves to their history and their emotions, often without choosing or realizing it. If they don't feel their spirit, then they've lost their hopes and dreams. Kigong is for recovering your spirit, your hopes and dreams.

To do this, simply move your body by following the flow of ki in it. Rather than thinking about the movement or trying to do a certain movement, move freely and instinctively. Born in energy, we live in energy, until, in the end, we go into that energy. Moving with energy is natural, and so it breaks through the preconceptions that keep our spirits boxed in. Rather than following the habitual movements of your body, kigong means letting yourself truly be free so that your inner greatness can shine.

Shall we do free kigong together now?

Raise your hands. Kigong begins in the moment you raise your hands. Then, close your eyes, letting your hands move continuously however they want to. We feel our bodies in these movements. Our lost health is restored. Just do it, going with what you feel instead of with your head.

Now, slowly getting up, try doing the movements standing up. All these movements are ki. Now the free kigong has begun. It's not something you learn, but something you just do, going with the feeling. After feeling the energy, your lost spirit will return, too. Then your creative life will begin.

Last week, Ilchi Lee made his first trip to El Salvador, a small Central American nation that has been plagued by civil war, poverty, and gang violence, but that has been moving toward peace. One of the tools they are using to fashion healthier, more peaceful, and more hopeful lives for themselves and, especially, the next generation is Brain Education, the mind-body-spirit self-development method Ilchi Lee created. Through the efforts of the NGO IBREA Foundation and the support of the Salvadoran and South Korean governments and Ilchi Lee's Global Cyber University, the Brain Education program has been implemented in 25 percent of the public schools in the country. As a result, these schools, and the families and communities they influence, have become places where students and teachers work together in harmony, where people are not as afraid to come to school, and where academic achievement has improved.

The first part of Ilchi Lee's trip consisted of his meeting the people who have worked for and with the IBREA Foundation to implement Brain Education in schools there. One group greeted him at the airport and another was waiting at the hotel in San Salvador, the capital, where Ilchi Lee was going to stay. They thanked him for Brain Education and the complete change in their lives it has had and expressed their anticipation for the coming days' events.

One of those people was Laura Calderon Toledo, who took part in the Brain Education pilot program in 2011 that the IBREA Foundation executed in the Centro Distrito Italia School on the northern outskirts of San Salvador. She gave him a bouquet and they shared a hug.

Beforehand, Ilchi Lee give a short lecture to about 220 public school principals.

On the third day, Ilchi Lee made an appearance on a national morning news show, where he was interviewed about the award, the activities of the IBREA Foundation, and the transformative effects of Brain Education. He was accompanied by one of the Program Directors of the IBREA Foundation, Isabel Pastor Gusman.

Later that day, Ilchi Lee visited the Brain Education Swimming Pool for Peace, a community project supported by the IBREA Foundation in Distrito Italia at the first school that adopted Brain Education. The pool was made possible by donations from around the world, and many people in the community helped to build it. The pool serves as a place where children can relax and play safely and where the community can come together.

All of the students and staff created a heartwarming event with local foods, music, a dance performance, a swimming demonstration, and even a commemorative plaque.

The sign for the pool left visitors with these words from Ilchi Lee: “Discover their great intrinsic value and manifest that value in their lives. Only then can you create peace within yourselves, in your community, your country, and the world. Always be proud of your pioneering work in the school Distrito Italia for world peace.”

Ilchi Lee even met Laura's grandmother and son. Laura is now in college and helps to teach Brain Education in El Salvador and spread its use in various ways.

For people in this area, the Pool for Peace is not just a swimming pool, but a place where freedom and peace are allowed. Having this pool makes the children and community feel worthwhile.

Afterward, Ilchi Lee said, “It was a very moving time of great inspiration beyond my expectation. Now that I came to see it, my heart is filled with gratitude and deep emotion. Children looked at me with shining eyes, and I saw that Brain Education for these people is beyond training and education. I felt that Brain Education is their earnest desire for decent living, survival, value of life, and center of living. The people of El Salvador were pure, beautiful, earnest, and desperate. Their hearts deeply moved my heart, and I made a choice that I would establish the Brain Education Peace Institute in order to transform the Brain Education here to a Brain Education of peace and this nation to a nation of peace.

“Brain Education is not something that can be delivered just as a program. It’s the spirit behind it that gives it value. Delivering this spirit, this value, is the essence of Brain Education. This spirit can only be delivered by people. After all, wasn't it the spirit of the people who came here every day to teach Brain Education that brought these results and changed a country? This is something that anyone can do.”

With the dedication of the IBREA Foundation staff and devoted educators in El Salvador, Brain Education is helping more and more people around the globe find peace, hope, and dreams, and the power to create them.

As the founder of Brain Education and the IBREA Foundation, Ilchi Lee, was given the highest national award for a foreigner, José Simeón Cañas Slave Liberator Order, at the El Salvador Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday, September 12 at 10:30 AM local time. The award recognized the emotional resilience and culture of peace his Brain Education method brought to gang-violent schools throughout the country.

In a speech before the main award ceremony, Ilchi Lee thanked the 250 public school principals in attendance for their tremendous support for Brain Education. He credits the event to their determined and unwavering efforts to bring peace and wellness to their students. More than 500 El Salvador teachers who directly experienced the effects and values of Brain Education recommended Ilchi Lee for the award.

The José Simeón Cañas award honors its citizens and foreigners who have made great social, educational, scientific, and philanthropic contributions to humanity. It especially expresses national gratitude for the greatest acts of protection and protection of human dignity.

Afterward, Ilchi Lee commented, "I saw that Brain Education for these people is beyond the level of training and education. I felt that Brain Education is their earnest desire for decent living, survival, value of life, and center of living. Their hearts deeply moved my heart. I felt that it was the hunger and desperation they had within that made today's El Salvador. I offer my blessings and gratitude to all of the principals, teachers, and others here who have actualized the principle of the Brain Operating System (BOS): anything can be achieved if there is belief and spirit."

Brain Education was brought to El Salvador by the IBREA Foundation, an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations ECOSOC that was founded by Ilchi Lee. After attending an IBREA-led conference on Brain Education at the UN headquarters in New York City in 2011, the Ambassador of El Salvador asked IBREA to start a pilot project at a school in Distrito Italia, one of the most socio-politically violent neighborhoods situated just outside of the capital of San Salvador. The school was facing a rampant gang problem that was terrorizing the students and teachers.

The four-month project, which included a group of 39 students aged 14 to 16 and 20 teachers, initially met with much resistance from the students and staff. However, as the students and teachers gained a connection to their bodies and minds with the meditation techniques taught in Brain Education, their attitudes started to change positively. Absenteeism was cut in half, peer relationships improved, and peaceful dialogue increased over fighting. Improvements were also seen in health condition, energy level, stress management, motivation and focus.

Soon, teachers, students, community members, and the government learned of the success of Brain Education in transforming what was deemed an “impossible” and “hopeless” school. In 2012, the Ministry of Education asked IBREA to expand the program to four more schools. With the help of the Ministry of Education of South Korea and the Global Cyber University in South Korea, the IBREA Foundation brought the program to 12 groups of teachers and students in four schools.

One of these schools was a notoriously violent one: Joaquin Redezno. Gloria Müller, the school’s principal, said that after taking on the role of principal, “I was able to secure the safety of the students. But after that I did not know how to tell these kids how to live. At that time, Brain Education came to our school and taught the students how to live by utilizing their brain.”

After seeing similarly positive results in these schools as Distrito Italia, more school administrators and community members worked to spread Brain Education to other schools in El Salvador. By the next year, through a partnership with the Salvadorian Institute of Educator’s Wellbeing (ISBM), IBREA Foundation was providing the Brain Education program to 230 principals and teachers annually, as well as to medical doctors, psychologists and other staff who serve educators. It also certified educators as Brain Education trainers who helped to bring the program to other schools. Now, seven years after it was first brought to El Salvador, Brain Education has been implemented in 1,340, or approximately 25%, of all public schools in the country.

The Principal of Francisco Morazan School, Edis Margoth Cañas de Amaya, herself found relief through Brain Education. “I had witnessed my sister die from the hands of gang members, and a few days later, her daughter was decapitated. Needless to say, I was under immense stress and trauma, and Brain Education gave me the tools to overcome this horrible situation.”

Lee said, "I attended the United Nations Millennium World Peace Conference held in 2000 at the UN Headquarters and read the Prayer for Peace. At that time, rather than making peace through prayer alone, we made a commitment to return to the United Nations by creating tools and methods to practice peace. Brain Education is a tool for peace practice."

Ilchi Lee hopes that more schools in El Salvador can experience a peaceful change in their school environments through Brain Education and believes that El Salvador can become the symbol of peace in Central America

The educational website Ilchi Lee founded, ChangeYourEnergy.com, will hold its first online summit over the next three days, September 11-13, 2018. The site chose the theme, Energy Healing & Meditation, to expand on the topics of the many courses offered to Premium Members of the website. The keynote speaker, Ilchi Lee will give a talk addressing “Methods to Prolong Your Life” on Thursday, September 13th at 6 pm PT / 9 pm ET.

A total of nine recorded talks will be streamed at specific dates and times on the site. Anyone can sign up the summit for free at energyhealingsummit.changeyourenergy.com. Here you will also find the full summit schedule and speaker list. Once you sign up, you'll receive an email with instructions for accessing the summit.

The eight other energy healing and meditation experts were trained by Ilchi Lee and have years of experience in their respective specialties. The topics range from spiritual detox to meridian exercises to mindful muscle building to healing emotional trauma to connecting to one’s soul. All will give “deep insights and relatable, applicable methods to usher the practices and ideas into your own daily life.”

The energy healing and meditation practices covered in the talks are invaluable for both the novice and experienced practitioner. Included in the talks are tips and exercises that can make significant results possible for people living in today’s fast-paced world.